


Sunlit Life

by mrsspookylovesbaseball



Category: The X-Files
Genre: Bugs & Insects, Episode: s01e20 Darkness Falls, F/M, Flirting, Fluff, Recovery, Romantic Angst, Romantic Fluff, Unresolved Sexual Tension
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-08-17
Updated: 2019-08-17
Packaged: 2020-09-02 14:07:45
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 6,020
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20277142
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mrsspookylovesbaseball/pseuds/mrsspookylovesbaseball
Summary: Prompt: Either what happens during the night when they’re down to the single lightbulb, or something post-episode with the two of them in quarantine....Set during and after Darkness Falls: Being in a confined, tense space surrounded by alien insects can lead our two favorite baby agents into some tricky-to-navigate situations.





	1. Into the Darkness

**Author's Note:**

  * For [suilven](https://archiveofourown.org/users/suilven/gifts).

> Andrea - I really, really hope you like it! 
> 
> A big thank you to SmilingOceanLover who gave me some incredibly challenging and helpful feedback and to Red2007 for the time you spent helping me better this story. 
> 
> And I can’t thank the Arcadia Falls Fam Bam enough - Lauren and Allie, you’re my rocks (or trash monsters?) who keep me writing and cheer me on and I’m so grateful for you two.

They couldn’t help staring up at the lightbulb, even if they knew it wouldn’t change a thing. Every flicker, every slight change in brightness was toying with the hope they held to get out of the woods alive. They felt completely and utterly powerless. It didn’t help that it felt like the cabin was getting smaller and smaller by the minute. 

Earlier that day, they at least had the ability to walk around from the front part of the cabin to the room in the back with the beds, near the generator. As they headed into the late evening, they did their best to hammer up the windows, cover any cracks they could find in the floorboards and under the doors. Though sealing themselves into that back room ensured the insects would stay out there, as Mulder had suggested earlier, there wasn’t much to be done about the ones already in the cabin they just couldn’t see. Figuring out that the bugs only swarmed if it were dark, they took little comfort in the protection they were getting from the finicky light bulb. 

Moore fell asleep first, laying back on his makeshift bed in one of the four cots. “Might as well try and get some sort of rest before daybreak.” In truth, he couldn’t stand the silence of the cabin and his heart jumping every time that damn lightbulb flickered, thinking about the insects he couldn’t feel crawling all over him. He hadn’t really considered what the lightbulb going off would really mean until now and he knew if he didn’t stop thinking about it he’d go crazy. 

Moore also couldn’t stand the awkward tension that filled the cabin, which was completely unrelated to the precarious situation of their imminent bug-related deaths. It seemed like a ridiculous notion, but he wished he could just shove the two stubborn federal agents outside and have them dish it out. He knew they had started to argue earlier, about Mulder letting Spinney go, but after overhearing the brief verbal confrontation, it was very clear to Moore that the two agents were still very unsettled and very pissed off. Sighing, he figured maybe if he played the fool and gave them space, as much as he possibly could in this tight room, they’d figure their shit out. 

To his relief, just as he was falling asleep he heard a faint whisper a few feet away. 

“Scully?”

Scully rolled her eyes. She’d be lying to herself if she said she wasn’t still a bit pissed off at Mulder for letting Spinney go. It really wasn’t even about the fact that he let him go - frankly, she might have done the same thing, but rather she was pissed that Mulder had just written off any opinion she might have had on the matter. And now, here they were, likely spending the last night of their lives in the woods, alone and upset. 

“Scully?” Mulder tried again. “Are you asleep or are you still just mad at me?” 

She sighed deeply, loudly. 

“You are awake.” Her partner replied softly. “Scully, I’m sorry. I really am.” Still more silence. “But... I know he’s coming back. I know it.” 

Scully propped herself up on her elbows, turning towards him. “Mulder, I’m not mad at you for letting Spinney go.” She paused while taking in the guilt in his eyes. “I probably would have done the same thing. I just… thought you might have asked your _ partner _ before you did anything drastic _ . _”

_ Ah. There it is again. _ “It was reckless I know,” he sat up and continued, “but, I don’t want us to die out here. And I think he’s truly our best chance. He knows these woods better than we do.” _ Scully, I do trust you. Please believe me. _

Scully tipped her head back, staring up at the ceiling. “Yeah.” She sat up then, no longer able to try and feign getting some rest. Sitting cross-legged she rested her chin on her hands. “I know, Mulder. I hope you’re right…” It still surprised her that she had grown to trust him so implicitly throughout the course of their relatively short partnership.

They had really only known each other for a few months, doing some of the strangest casework she’d ever encountered. The strangest part of the whole experience of being assigned to the X-Files, though, was her relationship with Mulder. 

She had heard about him at the Academy, but he was not at all what she had made him out to be in her head. A few years her senior, she was astounded by his intelligence. Scully had always considered herself intelligent, spending years excelling in school and spending free time learning about things that interested her. She’d always been “the smart one” and yet, this was the first time in her career that she regularly felt intellectually challenged by a peer. It was invigorating. And if she was being honest with herself, it was quite the turn on. 

She also couldn’t deny that she was absolutely attracted to Mulder since the moment she laid eyes on him in their basement office those months ago. A relatively harmless attraction. She was human after all. They spent so much time together, it was only a matter of time before he infiltrated her late-night thoughts or daydreams during a particularly long and arduous case. 

What she didn’t expect was the emotional attachment she felt towards her partner. Scully would never admit it out loud, or even to herself, but Mulder had become one of the most important people in her life. Outside of family, he was truly the only other person in her life she cared for deeply, and that she knew cared about her just as much. 

Of course, they were only _ just partners. _

Across the room Mulder smiled, realizing he was finally getting Scully to warm back up to him. He sat up as well, facing her. 

“Oh, don’t look so smug. I’m choosing to forgive you solely because we might _ die _ , Mulder.” _ A handful of cases together and somehow we’ve always ended up in some kind of dire situation. _

Mulder got up and walked the few steps he could towards the window. “Scully, Spinney will come back. And listen,” he paused, tipping his head, “the generator is still running. We’ll make it, I promise.” He crossed back over, this time sitting down next to Scully. “We’ll figure something out.”

They sat in silence for a while, listening to the hum of the generator and Moore’s slow breaths. There was comfort in their physical closeness, the kind that only arises naturally from shared experiences. After you’ve survived killer worms in the arctic, kidnappings by a bank robber in the body of an old flame, and almost getting raped by a gender morphing brother of a religious sect, there’s a certain level of comfort that came from sharing space. It was something they never talked about, seeing as it was a bit inexplicable to both of them, but they never questioned it. It’s why Scully didn’t question Mulder’s hand that constantly rested on her lower back. Or why Mulder didn’t move away from Scully slightly leaning into him in the early hours of the morning after they had been up all night on a stakeout.

Scully didn’t question the amount of care and tenderness Mulder showed her after her father died. His soft touches were exactly what she needed at the time, even if she didn't know it then. After almost passing out from smoke inhalation trying to rescue two little boys from a burning hotel floor, Mulder held onto the feeling of Scully’s fingers running through his hair and gentle caresses as he fought off a fire-induced panic attack. That physical connection was his lifeline in those few minutes. And here he was now, the feeling of her knees and shoulders brushing against his acting as another lifeline.

“And to think, I used to love camping and cabins and hiking through the woods,” Scully said wistfully, breaking the silence. “I used to love it when we went out to Yosemite in the summer, just the six of us. It would be like the rest of the world would quiet down for the weekend and all that mattered was how many marshmallows we could stuff our faces with at the end of the day.” _ Charlie inevitably always won. _

Mulder groaned and dropped his head on Scully’s shoulder. “Did I just ruin camping for you forever?” 

Scully laughed softly, resting her temple against his forehead. “_ C’mon Scully, it’ll be a nice trip to the forest. _” She dropped her voice to try and sound like him.

“I don’t sound like that! You made me sound like a drunk Eeyore…” he groaned. 

He could practically hear her raising an eyebrow in response. 

Mulder shook his head, kicking himself internally. “I really did think it would be fine… ya know? I thought water amoebas might be the worst of what we’d fi-” the word dropped in his mouth as the lightbulb flickered off.

As the room fell into darkness, Scully clutched her partner's hand without a second thought. Mulder squeezed her hand right back, not knowing which one of them was more scared. They both saw the bioluminescent dots swarming everywhere around the room, gradually getting more frantic. They didn’t dare breathe. 

As quick as it flashed out, the light flickered back on. Outside the generator sputtered back to life, humming more quietly than before. Both Mulder and Scully looked at each other with wide eyes and let out a stiff breath. The insects, now shielded by the light, moved around unseen.

“Talk about close…” Mulder muttered as he moved to get up and go back to his bunk. He was stopped by Scully’s grip still holding on to his hand. He furrowed his brow as he looked down at her - a silent question. 

“Stay.” He could see a mix of fear and softness in her eyes, a truly rare unguarded moment. “I-”

Mulder cut her off as he sat back down, understanding. “Okay.” He slipped his hand from hers and cautiously brought an arm around her, bringing Scully close to this chest. He knew the comfort that being with her always brought him. How whatever tension he might be feeling, whatever worries he had, always dissipated to something more manageable whenever he knew Scully was near. It was like they drew strength from one another. He thought about this a lot, why this might be the case. He trusted Scully and he cared for her. A terrifying amount. _ But that’s of course how partners are supposed to feel, right? _

She closed her eyes and tried to find peace in the darkness behind her eyelids that didn’t hold swarms of alien insects, or whatever the hell they were. She hadn’t been held in a while, she thought. Not since things had ended with Ethan some weeks back. And funnily enough, she found herself in the situation that caused so many problems for her and Ethan. _ No, we’re just partners, Ethan. No, there’s nothing else there, Ethan. No, of course, I care about Mulder, he’s my partner, Ethan. No, I didn’t mean it like that, Ethan. _ She slowly wrapped her arms around her partner’s torso, trying to shake the arguments and annoyance she was starting to feel. And yet… _ this feels good. It feels...right. _

The alarm bells started going off in her head as her body relaxed against his. _ This was a bad idea, and yet _ . _ We might die in a few hours. _

Scully couldn’t bring herself to keep caring about whether this was right or wrong. It was tiring having to ignore whatever attraction she had been feeling towards Mulder, especially after her break up. She’d never considered acting on it though, not seriously anyway. 

There _ were _ fleeting moments, moments where ignoring that carnal physical attraction became just that much harder. _ I think it’s remotely plausible that someone might think you’re hot. _ The indirect compliment hadn’t left her mind for days after he had made it. Mulder was nothing but respectful towards her, especially out in the field, but occasionally he’d say something like that or look at her in a certain way when he didn’t think she’d notice, and all she could think about was how he might own up to the flirtations if she pressed him on them. _ Do I really want to know? _

Mulder leaned down and pressed a gentle kiss to the top of her head and Scully felt nothing but a sense of calm flood her body. She felt his arms squeeze around her a little tighter, unsure whether it was out of a need to comfort her or to comfort himself. They both sat there, wondering how many hours they had left in the night. How many hours the generator would stay alive, how many hours they would stay alive, how many hours they had left with each other...

That’s when she noticed the silence. 

“Mulder…” their faces were millimeters apart when she lifted her head up to address him. Her eyes were wide open in fear. 

“Yeah?” He couldn’t trust his voice to say anything more than a syllable, wondering if he had done something wrong. If he’d crossed an unsaid boundary. 

It was then he realized the generator had stopped humming. 

Their eyes frantically searched the room, a deep fear piercing both of them down to their cores. As she quickly tried to think of a last-ditch effort to ward off the insects, a thin streak of sunlight shone in through the window. _ Daybreak _. The euphoric feeling of relief Scully felt when she realized they had another day’s worth of sunlit life engulfed her entire being. It was like a dam breaking - the rush of adrenaline would have knocked her off her feet had she been standing. 

Turning her face back towards Mulder’s, she saw the wide smile breaking across his face and didn’t think twice about leaning in to kiss him. _ She followed her heart. _

His lips were soft, his mouth warm. Not a surprise. She inhaled deeply as his taste filled her mouth and as she felt the promise of life coursing through her veins. She felt his fingers digging into her body, restraint and desire battling for control. With a lingering last swipe of the tongue, she broke away from him, closing her eyes momentarily to record every bit of the moment. 

Mulder stared at her in wonder as she opened her eyes slowly, unsure of what had just transpired between them. It might have been the single best moment of his life and it was taking every bit of willpower to not lean back in and reexperience it.

He could see the wheels turning behind Scully’s eyes as logic and sense returned to her, a sheen of doubt and _ god, please not regret _ slowly curtaining her gaze. She bit her lower lip, a habit he knew she had when considering something. As she opened her mouth to inevitably say something he wasn’t ready to hear, Mulder quickly got up and beat her to it. “We should wake Moore up and get going. There’s got to be some way for us to make it out of here and we should use all the sunlight we can get.” 

Trying not to seem so flustered at the quick turn of their unspoken conversation, Scully nodded and bent down to reach for her shoes. She was feeling simultaneously terrified and grateful that he didn’t mention or call attention to the gross violation of their understanding of their partnership. They were colleagues, partners, and over the past few months, you could say they had started being friends. And Scully knew that colleagues, and partners, and friends _ did not _ kiss each other. _ Not like that. _

As she walked over to wake Moore, she hoped to God that they’d get out of there in one piece and have the time to figure out what the hell just happened.


	2. Pinch Me

Mulder felt like a dried-out, dusty raisin. This was leaps and bounds better than he had felt when he initially woke up in the quarantine facility. Scully still hadn’t woken up, but her vital signs had started getting stronger and her fluid levels were returning to normal. The last time he asked the doctors about when she might regain consciousness they had told him that it would be only a matter of hours before she would wake up. 

He had been terrified when he initially asked how she was doing and was told that Scully would have died had they not been rescued when they were.  _ Two or three more hours of exposure, she might not have made it. _

_ Idiot. A nice trip to the forest. Sure.  _

He had been sleeping a lot during his recovery. Partially because he still felt fatigued, but also because the world felt infinitely more boring without Scully to talk to. There weren’t any TVs to watch or books to read. After the first few days, Moore went home to his family, so he had lost the only company he had that wasn’t sticking him with needles every few hours. Once he became more stable, and Scully was safe to move, they had transferred them to a hospital near Olympia, WA. Though now he had access to TV, he was getting tired of the same 15 channels that never seemed to have anything good on besides public access channels. 

Just two days ago, he had been cleared with a clean bill of health, yet Mulder didn’t want to leave. He instead camped out in Scully’s room, setting up shop with a pile of magazines he had taken from the lobby and a relatively comfortable chair he claimed as his own in the corner of the room. He just needed to make sure that she’d be okay. 

All this alone time in her room was not helping the fact that he couldn’t stop thinking about how he had kissed his partner.  _ Well, Scully kissed you,  _ he reminded himself. 

It had been nice to hold her, Mulder mused as he looked over at Scully’s sleeping form. She was so small. Objectively he knew this, but it had made a world’s difference to be sitting with her, holding her in his arms - something he rarely thought could actually happen. Truth be told, he had been just as scared as she was when the generator had puttered out the first time and was thankful for their closeness that last hour. 

He kept telling himself that he knew why the kiss had happened. They had been tired, they had argued, emotions were at a high. It only made sense that she would do something as rash as kiss him when the sunlight shone through the window. He had never felt so relieved to see daylight in his life. He was elated and -

“Mulder?” Scully said in a quiet, raspy voice breaking him out of his reverie. 

“Scully!” Mulder sat up in his chair quickly, a sudden wave of relief crashing over him. He had never been so happy to hear his name or her voice. “How are you feeling?” he asked, as he walked over to her bedside. 

“Hmm… thirsty…” she frowned as she tried to sit up. 

Mulder gently placed a hand on her shoulders. “Lay down, Scully. I’ll go find a doctor and some water for you.” He rushed out of the room to find some help, glad he no longer had to wheel around a rolling oxygen tank with him. 

After the doctors examined Scully, which much to Mulder’s amusement really ended up being Scully interrogating the doctors, the two partners were left alone for the night. 

“Do you remember much of what happened?” Mulder asked cautiously. He was sitting on the edge of her bed, trying hard not to look at how red and irritated her skin looked. The guilt hadn’t really truly hit him until after she woke up. 

“It’s all in bits and pieces,” she replied, closing and opening her eyes slowly. “We were in the car when they swarmed. I remember… I remember running through the woods before that. And the cabin. I remember the generator died and…” 

Mulder saw the exact moment the memory crossed her mind. “That’s all I remember.” Scully quickly added and looked down at her hands. 

“They found us encased in one of those cocoons. You, me, and Moore. They kept us in quarantine for a few days as a precaution. You and I were brought here to the hospital two days ago after you were strong enough to be relocated.”

“Moore?”

“He went home to finish recuperating with his family.” 

Slight relief washed over her face. “How are you?”

“Oh, I’m great. Could run a marathon if I wanted to!” Mulder chuckled and was glad to see a small smile spread across Scully’s chapped lips, making a mental note to ask the nurses for some vaseline. “The doctors cleared me to go home yesterday. Said I just needed a lot of rest, but was set to recover the rest of the way at home. Good news, I guess.” 

“Well Mulder, if they cleared you yesterday why are you still here?” She grabbed the cup of water from the bed stand and brought it up to her lips. 

“I uh, I didn’t want to go home until I knew you’d be okay.” His eyes met hers and he saw a slight sheen of pink cover her cheeks over the rim of the glass. He gave her a half-smile, knowing the blush had nothing to do with the damage done by the bugs. 

Scully put the glass down and sighed, the fatigue was hitting her again. “Thank you, Mulder. For staying.” 

“Of course, Scully. What are partners for?” 

“Having company for when alien fireflies attack you?” She saw him grimace, his gaze falling down to his lap and Scully immediately regretted cracking the joke. She reached over and took his hand, squeezing it softly. “Mulder. Hey, Mulder, look at me.” His eyes flickered up to meet hers, and she couldn’t tell whether they looked wet or whether it was just the harsh, fluorescent lighting. She squeezed his hand again and smiled, “I didn’t mean that. I was kidding.” 

“You almost  _ died _ , Scully.”

“But I didn’t. I’m fine. We’re both going to be fine. Nature of the job, right?” 

“Guess so.”

“Oh c’mon, Mulder. If you’re gonna keep me company here for a few more days, I’m going to need you to not be mopey about all this, okay?” 

It took a second, but Mulder’s heart leapt at the realization that she wanted him to stay. 

……………………………….

They had fallen asleep soon after, Mulder returning to his chair in slightly higher spirits than before. He had been having a hard time sleeping with all the noise out in the hallway, people who were running around at all hours of the night, and the beeping of the monitors. For the first time though, he felt relieved to know Scully was back and truly on the way to getting better. 

He had woken up just a few minutes before, looking for more water. As he was walking back into the room, he noticed Scully was tossing and turning in her bed. He called her name softly from the doorframe and got no reply.  _ Maybe she’s dreaming?  _ He approached her slowly, noticing that her forehead was scrunched up as though she were in pain. Mulder couldn’t make out any of the words she was muttering quietly. 

“Scully?” He tried again, a little louder this time. Reaching down to touch her shoulder, her eyes flew open and she choked back a scream. 

“The lights!” Scully was breathing erratically, “Turn on the lights!”

“Scully. Scully, listen to me. You’re okay.” He bent down next to her and tried to get her to lay back down. “You were dreaming. It’s okay. There are no bugs here. We’re in the hospital. We’re safe. We’re safe.” 

Without much thinking, she reached for him, burying her face into his shoulder. “God, Mulder. I could feel them attacking all over again.” She tried to slow down her breathing, counting slowly in her head.  _ This is ridiculous Dana. You’re clutching on to him, again, as if your life depended on it.  _ She groaned, frustrated at herself. For relying on him for comfort, for wanting him. That she couldn’t just do what felt right.

Mulder felt her tense up as she let go of him and moved to lay back down. “Do you… want some water?” He felt uneasy around her for possibly the first time since they started working together.  _ What the hell was that about? _

“I’m fine, Mulder.” She responded, pulling the white sheets over her shoulders. “Sorry for waking you.” She wouldn’t look at him. Her words were sharp as knives, and she wasn’t sure if they were meant for him or for herself. 

“I was already awake, it’s no problem,” Mulder replied, but didn’t make a move to go back to what was now his corner of the room. “I was just getting some water.”

He sat in silence for a while, trying to wrap his head around what was wrong. He wasn’t sure if she was upset at him, just tired, or both. “Did I say something wrong?” he asked finally. 

“No, Mulder,” Scully replied, slowly in a measured tone. “I’m just… tired.” 

Not satisfied with the answer, he pushed on. “Are you upset about…” he cleared his throat, “back at the cabin...”  _ You’re not twelve, just spit it out. “ _ That we… kissed?” The question hung in the air dangerously. This was territory he’d never even considered talking about, let alone thought he’d ever find himself addressing head-on. Especially not with her. He noticed Scully was worrying at her bottom lip. She was nervous and so was he. “Because I get it, I do. Our emotions were running high and I don’t know about you, but I was terrified about whether we’d get out or not.” He was talking quickly now, nervous that if he paused for a moment the world might end. “And I didn’t mean to cross a line, I just wasn’t thinking. I shouldn’t have let that happen. It was unprofessional and, and I’m sorry if I, um... ”

_ Jesus Christ Dana, now he thinks he’s done something wrong. You’re the one that made the move on him. Say something!  _

“Mulder, stop.” 

“No, I mean it, Scully.” Scully could feel how sincere he was being. “I really am sorry about -”

“Mulder. Stop.” She said more sternly this time. “It’s fine, really. We should just… sleep.” 

He stopped talking, startled and slightly stung by the suddenness of her words. He didn’t realize how much he wanted to talk about what had happened, and what it could mean until now. He met her eyes and saw how exhausted she looked, no doubt the medication taking a toll on her recuperation just as he had experienced after first waking up. Though Mulder was struggling to figure out why she  _ still _ seemed so upset while he was just trying to apologize for something that he probably shouldn’t have let happen to begin with, he resigned himself to his partner’s wishes. 

“Um, okay. Goodnight then.” He walked over and slumped down into his chair, turning his body as far away from Scully as he could.  _ Just won’t bring it up in the morning and we’ll forget about it.  _

As he sat there, Mulder knew he shouldn’t be as upset as he was about her reaction.  _ I mean of course she regrets it.  _ It wasn’t like any of the feelings he had outside of their work partnership could be reciprocated. Scully was a smart, accomplished, and a very professional woman. She’d never actually  _ want _ to break that professionalism if the situation hadn’t been as dire as it was. Most of all, he knew that he couldn’t blame her for being upset at him. 

They had a connection, he knew that. He had felt it since they had worked that first case back in Bellefleur. It’s why he told her about Samantha. Why they seemed to be getting closer and closer after every case they finished working on. It’s the reason his heart fluttered when he saw the look of pure wonder in her eyes while they watched mysterious lights dancing in the night sky a few months ago. Why he felt an unwelcome pang of guilt when he knew she was leaving Jersey to make a date. How he had lost his appetite and how his nerves were on edge while they were trying to find where Dupre was holding her hostage.

_ But none of that matters. We’re partners. Just partners.  _

Scully had regretted the finality of her statement as soon as Mulder got up from her bed. The fact that he only half-heartedly wished her goodnight, with his back turned to her, cemented just how shitty she felt about the whole thing. This was not how she wanted this conversation to go. Most of all, she was certain she didn’t want Mulder to feel like he had done something wrong or that he needed to apologize for something because they had kissed. Because  _ she _ had kissed _ him.  _

She tried to fall asleep, she really did. But the nagging feeling of hurting Mulder, or of him feeling guilty over something he absolutely shouldn’t, wouldn’t let her rest. What she wanted to do was cross the room, crawl into his lap, and show him just how wrong he was about their kiss. The hospital staff probably wouldn’t like what that might do to her heart rate and IVs. And hell, she wasn’t even sure if Mulder would like that either. 

She just really, _ really  _ needed him to know that when she kissed him, it wasn’t just about the fact that they hadn’t died. Yes, maybe almost dying and the euphoria and adrenaline that overwhelmed her finally gave her the guts to make a move, but she knew that wasn’t at the bottom of it. She had feelings, fear really, that if she got involved with another colleague, another person she admired and cared about, she’d just get hurt. She’d lose what she loved most about her job - the relationship she and Mulder had built, their partnership. 

_And yet, he had stayed to make sure you were okay. He_ _didn’t drop off the face of the planet because your lips had touched. Well, maybe a little more than just ‘touched’._ _He hadn’t resigned from the FBI and hadn’t objected to continuing working with you._

_ It’s now or never.  _ Scully had an inkling that Mulder hadn’t fallen asleep so she called out his name softly. “Mulder, can you come here please?” 

She breathed a sigh of relief when he got up and approached her bed slowly. He didn’t make a move to sit down and it was unnerving her. “I didn’t mean to sound so upset. I’m  _ not _ upset.” She shifted herself back to lean against the backboard of the hospital bed. “Mulder, sit with me?” She patted the bed softly, scooting her legs aside to make room for him. “I’m sorry if I upset you, really…” 

“Scully, it’s fine really.” He reached up to run a hand through his hair. “I just-”

“No, let me talk.” She waited for his nod, and continued, trying to find the right words,  _ and the courage _ , for what she wanted to say. “I... You shouldn’t apologize for anything. You didn’t… Mulder, _ I  _ was the one who kissed _ you _ . You’re right, our emotions were high and God, I was so damn happy we weren’t going to die in that cabin when I saw the sun. I don’t know what came over me, but…” the words that were so easily pouring out of her mouth came to a sudden stop. Scully could feel her heart practically leaping out of her chest,  _ which was totally a medically sound notion.  _

“Hey,” Mulder interjected, noticing how nervous she was. He reached over and squeezed her knee lightly, tenderly. “It’s okay, really. We can just forget about it. Like a kiss under the mistletoe at the Bureau’s holiday party between friends. No big deal, nothing we have to revisit or hash out.” 

She mumbled a reply so quietly that he hardly heard it. “What?” 

Feeling just a bit bolder, more sure of herself, she looked her partner straight in the eyes. “I said,” her voice growing louder with conviction in every word, “what if I don’t want to forget it?” 

“Oh.” The realization hit him like a ton of bricks. He had felt guilty that he couldn’t stop replaying the moment in his head that he didn’t even stop to consider the fact that Scully might have felt something other than anger towards him about the whole thing.  _ Or was that wishful thinking? _

“Oh.” She chuckled nervously, “I don’t regret it, Mulder.” She reached out to rest a small hand atop his. 

_ Holy shit, this is not happening.  _ He swallowed hard, staring at his partner. 

“Mulder? You still in there?” Scully tipped her head to the side, trying to ignore the slow fear that was creeping up through her body.  _ Shit, did I misread this whole thing? _

“Sorry, yeah,” Mulder replied after a long pause. “Just trying to figure out if I’m still asleep and having the best dream of my life right now.”

Scully laughed then, and all the tension she had been feeling dissipated slowly. “Do you want me to pinch you?”

“No. I can think of a better way of finding out.” Mulder moved up the bed slightly, leaning in slowly to kiss her. Still doubtful, he stopped mere millimeters from her lips.  _ Scully, I’m giving you an out here if you want it.  _ Before he could even start to feel a sense of dread about the whole thing, Scully tipped her head to meet his, lips pressing up against his eagerly. 

It felt like fireworks had gone off in the room. Entangling her fingers into his hair, Scully took in every feeling. Her worn-out body fluttered alive with thousands of sensations. Chills ran up her spine, fire ran through her core. She was lost in the way he nipped at her lower lip, how he softly caressed the nape of her neck as his hand cradled her head. How right it felt to be with him. 

She thought she might combust when his mouth left hers and started trailing kisses down her neck. 

Scully gently pulled him closer, Mulder now practically laying atop her on the hospital bed. She felt fully and wonderfully engulfed by him. 

He silently prayed that she wouldn’t notice just how much he was enjoying this, nervous about the other boundaries they still had yet to cross. As he tried to concentrate on shifting strategically away from her, she shifted her hips just so off the bed, gasping, he felt her smile against his lips.  _ I might die here and I’d be truly happy.  _

“Alright folks, I know it’s late, but it’s time for Dr. Scully’s - oh! I’m so sorry!” One of the nurses had burst through the door, flipping on the lights to find the two agents entangled in one another. 

Mulder fumbled off the bed ungracefully, trying to regain his composure. His hair mussed and lips bright pink. Scully was trying her hardest not to laugh.  _ Of course this would happen... _

The nurse was staring at his feet, holding up a tray with the next dose of shots Scully was due for. “I’ll just. Get this done right quick and be on my way.” He had never injected someone as quickly as he had that day. “Have a good time… er… a good night, have a good night!”

As the nurse fumbled out the room, almost tripping over his own feet, Mulder and Scully turned to look at each other. Not able to hold it in any longer, the two broke out into a fit of laughter. 

Outside, the sun started to rise. 


End file.
